It is known in France as un secret de Polichinelle – an open secret.
Producers in Southern Europe know water addition to must goes on, but few want to admit to using what remains a taboo practice. Unlike in the US, where watering musts to facilitate fermentation is permitted, the procedure remains prohibited in the European Union, other than for dissolving food additives and processing aids including bentonite.
In France, watering was prohibited in 1907 following the revolt of hundreds of thousands of Languedoc producers led by vigneron Marcelin Albert, who rallied against unregulated, adulterated wines during a period of overproduction.
But now in the climate crisis, calls are growing in southern France for the legalization of watering to reduce alcohol levels and prevent stuck primary fermentations – the OIV (International Organisation of Vine and Wine) says stuck fermentations are a common occurrence because high alcohol levels inhibit many yeast strains. Current selected yeasts designed to lower potential alcohol levels and prevent nutrient deficiencies have a limited impact on ABV levels.
"I think changes to legislation in Europe that would allow producers to add water to musts by 3-5 percent in a measured, controlled way, should be looked into," Thomas Montagne, owner, and wine producer of Château de Clapier, located in Luberon, in the Rhône valley, and former chairman of the CEVI, the European Confederation of Independent Winegrowers.
"Soon, we’ll have no other option but to add water to musts," said a reputable winemaker in Bordeaux's Graves appellation. "What will I do when I have shrivelled grapes, low yields and 16 percent ABV? My wines would be unsellable."
Rather than watering, Fernando Zamora, president of enology at the OIV, advocates the legal employment of spinning cones and reverse osmosis machines to reduce alcohol levels. Such equipment is used by large wine companies, but remains financially out of the reach for most EU producers. It is thus not a solution for many European vintners grappling with the impact of global warming in a changing climate.
With a growing number of winemakers lambasting legislators in France and the EU for adopting slow and cumbersome adaption approaches to climate change, (including the limited use of permitted alternative grape varieties in PDO appellations), some producers took the law into their own hands in 2022, by adding water to musts, a Wine-Searcher investigation can reveal.
"Several producers in Bordeaux and southern France added water by 7 percent and reduced alcohol levels from 16 percent ABV down to 13.5 percednt in 2022. It is illegal, yes, but comprehensible too," said one winemaker in Bordeaux speaking anonymously.
Watered wine and world trade
In France, the open secret is that some producers add water prior or during fermentation during remontage (pumping over) or when flushing winery equipment.
Imminent EU rule changes are not on the horizon. Adding water to musts that have high sugar concentrations reduces osmotic pressure allowing more stable fermentations, but the OIV, which advises the EU on wine rules, remains steadfast in its opposition to regulated water addition to musts, which Zamora says can dilute wine, weaken color, and increase yields and volumes.
Yet calls in France from some producers to allow controlled water addition in musts has highlighted different legislative approaches outside the EU.
In Australia, it is known as black snake fining – the black snake being the water hose. Watering to facilitate fermentations is permitted in the US, but legislative differences have become a trade issue; US wine imports to the EU for instance, do not need to state legal water additions on wine bottle labels.
"In Napa Valley, there are producers who add 3 or 4 percent of water in production but you won't see it written on the label of the bottle, it's perfectly legal; but here, despite the impact of climate change, you can't do it,” says a grand cru producer in Pomerol.
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